Wahdat-ul-Wujud

Literally, it means unity of existence. That is there is only one thing that exists. It is a term that has been used by the Ulama of great calibre. Being ambiguous, this has been interpreted in different ways. Nonetheless, the clear and simple interpretation of this is that only the existence of Allah Ta’ala is perfect, complete and real. Besides Him, everything that exists does not represent anything in front of His existence. Just as the light of a candle does not represent anything in front of sunlight during the day, similarly, everything exists by the command of Allah Ta’ala. Whatever is happening anywhere is solely through the command of Allah Ta’ala. The existence of Allah Ta’ala dominates all existence. The power and Qudrat of Allah Ta’ala are manifested in everything.

The gaze of a person that is surrounded, dominated and invaded by materialism is focused on the superficial and extreme form of his surroundings. It does not go beyond this - he remains imprisoned in the material world. However, the gaze of a pious and sincere person goes beyond these barriers in order to finally testify to the Divine Omnipresence everywhere. This makes him see Allah Ta’ala everywhere. It is like an X-ray which does not see the outer skin. It penetrates the skin and sees the bones and the marrow of the bone.

Therefore, Wahdat-ul-Wujud is nothing other than this and according to this interpretation, there is nothing Shirk in it. On the contrary, it is a very advanced degree of piety and Taqwa that is called “Ihsaan” in the language of Hadith. Will we blame the person who has a piercing gaze or flatter the other one whose gaze is defective? Every individual is given the choice to decide according to his intelligence.

[English version of "Wahdatoul woujoud" – Al Jamiat – Vol.1 No.11]